Process for manufacturing ribbed tubes and ribbed tubes thus manufactured

ABSTRACT

The invention concerns a process for manufacturing ribbed tubes, wherein a stainless steel tube is provided with ribs by helicoidally winding a copper strip around it, and a ribbed tube thus manufactured. In joining the tube and rib, the unmelted copper strip is set on the tube surface edgewise into a melted area produced by a laser beam exclusively on the tube surface, thereby bonding the strip onto the tube by the solidification of the melted tube material. In this manner ribbed tubes can be provided, featuring an internal tube made of corrosion-resistant stainless steel and a helicoidal rib made of copper for increasing the heat exchange surface of the tube, which is distinguished by high thermal conductivity.

This application is a division of prior application Ser. No. 08/892,408,filed Jul. 15, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,809,647.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention concerns a process for manufacturing ribbed tubes, whereina stainless steel tube is provided with ribs by helicoidally winding acopper strip around it, and ribbed tubes thus manufactured.

European Patent 0 303 074 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,841,617 and 4,969,255disclose a process for manufacturing metallic heat exchanger tubeshaving a heat exchange surface area increased by ribs. In that process,a strip forming the ribs is helicoidally wound around the outsidesurface of the rotating tube with the bottom edge of the strip beingcontinuously welded to the tube.

In that process, welding is done by melting the contact surfaces of thetube and the bottom edge of the strip, the tube being melted with alaser beam exclusively on the tube surface and the strip being meltedwith the same laser beam exclusively in the area where the strip comesinto contact with the tube, and by then joining the bottom edge of thestrip being fed to the tube.

The tube and strip surface areas being melted and joined are broughttightly together by the attraction force exerted on the strip being fedas the strip comes into contact with the tube and are bonded togetherwhen they are subsequently cooled.

This process has been proven effective in industry. In particular, whendifferent grades of stainless steel are used for the tube and ribs, thisknown process is well-suited and is often used for manufacturing ribbedtubes for a great variety of applications.

However, when a stainless steel tube and copper ribs are used formanufacturing ribbed tubes, this process has proven to be difficult toperform and can only be applied using complex equipment.

The main cause of the problem resides in the different materialproperties of stainless steel and copper, in particular the differentmelting points with a temperature difference of approximately 400° C. Inthis case there is a danger that the copper may sublimate before thestainless steel is melted.

This fact requires that the laser beam setting and control, as well asthe rotation and winding speeds, be accurately adjusted. Correctivemeasures must also often be applied during the process for fine-tuning.Therefore the process, its control, and automation are complex.

Furthermore, the energy consumption of the laser, which must be focusedon the surface of the tube and the bottom edge of the strip, is veryhigh. Overall, the known process borders on the unfeasible when thematerials stainless steel and copper are combined.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of this invention is to provide a process for the manufactureof ribbed tubes that is particularly well-suited for the materialcombination of stainless steel tubes and helicoidally wound ribs made ofcopper and that provides a high-quality bond between tube and rib.Furthermore, an object of the invention is a ribbed tube having a coreof corrosion-resistant tube and a heat exchange surface increasedthrough ribs having high thermal conductivity.

A process according to an embodiment of the invention provides forcontinuously melting the tube surface with a laser beam, exclusively inthe contact zone where the tube is to be joined to the bottom edge ofthe strip, prior to setting the copper strip. This is done in an areathat is greater in the axial direction of the tube than the width of thebottom edge of the strip. The length of the melted area in theperipheral direction of the tube depends on the specific dimensions ofthe tube, such as diameter and rib thickness, as well as on the materialproperties. The parallel rays of the laser beam can be focused on thisarea to form a hot spot, providing high power density, which is used inan optimized fashion for this purpose.

It is essential for the process according to this embodiment of theinvention that the tube-side edge area of the copper strip be setunmelted into the melted tube material. The copper strip is reliably andtightly bonded to the tube through the subsequent solidification of themelted tube material.

Thus the invention provides a cost-effective process for bonding ahelicoidal copper rib onto a stainless steel tube, avoiding the previousdisadvantages. Despite the different material-specific properties ofstainless steel and copper, ribbed tubes with the stainless steel/coppercombination can be economically, manufactured.

The copper strip set on the tube edgewise may be tightly bonded to thetube at the bottom edge of the strip without the use of additionalmaterial. The heated zone is small and the structural changes in thetube and strip are slight.

The small dimensions of the heated zone, in conjunction with the reducedthickness of the seam, prevent the material from warping. This resultsin the ribbed tube having a high degree of shape and dimensionalstability.

The laser beam can be accurately adjusted for and focused on its onlyjob, which is to melt the tube surface in the contact zone. Thisprovides short heating times and high joining speed.

A ribbed tube according to an embodiment of the invention isdistinguished by the combination of a stainless steel tube and ribs madeof copper.

Such a ribbed tube is used, for example, in areas where corrosive mediaflow through the tube, while on the outside there is a heat-exchangemedium that is only slightly corrosive or non-corrosive.

By using stainless steel tubes, phase boundary surface reactions betweenthe internal metallic tube surface and the liquid or gaseous heatexchange media are avoided. Damage, such as erosion or changes in theproperties of the material, is thus prevented. On the other hand, theribbed tube is distinguished by its copper rib and the advantagesassociated with it, such as high heat conductivity and resistance to airmoisture, hot water, and different acids.

A ribbed tube according to an embodiment of the invention has excellentheat flow and therefore high efficiency. Accordingly, heat exchangersbuilt with these ribbed tubes can be used more efficiently and can bedesigned to be more compact, which ultimately should result in lowerheat exchange costs.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a partially sectioned side view of an embodiment of aribbed tube according to the invention;

FIG. 2 shows a section through the ribbed tube shown in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 shows a magnified view of the area identified as Section III inFIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a ribbed tube 1, where a stainless steel tube 2 is providedwith ribs using a helicoidally wound copper strip 3.

In the manufacturing process, the tube 2 to be provided with ribs isfirst fastened at its ends 4, 5 so that it can be driven in a rotatingmanner. Strip 3 to be wound on the tube 2 is drawn from a supply spool,aligned, and joined with tube 2 using a certain pulling and brakingforce. Strip 3 is continuously and progressively set on the tube surface6 with a simultaneous rotation of tube 2 and an adjustable forwardmotion of strip 3 in the axial direction of tube 2. Strip 3 thug formsan endless rib 3' for increasing the heat exchange surface of tube 2.

In joining the strip 3 to the tube 2, the strip 3 is set edgewise andunmelted on a melted area 10 on the tube surfaced 6, the melted area 10being produced on tube surface 6 by a laser beam, and the strip 3 isbonded to the tube 2 through the solidification of the melted tubematerial (see FIGS. 2 and 3).

Welding is performed by melting only the tube surface 6 in a contactzone 7 of the tube 2, the contact zone 7 being the zone of the tubesurface 6 with which the bottom edge 8 of the strip 3 will come incontact. Welding is done with a laser beam, prior to setting copperstrip 3. The process is carried out continuously, with time and positionadjusted to the helicoidal winding process. The width of the melted area10 in the axial direction of the tube 2 is greater than the width ofbottom edge 8 of the strip.

After the tube surface 6 has been melted in the contact zone 7, thetube-side edge area 9 of the cooper strip 3 is set unmelted into themelted area 10 of the tube surface 6. After the melted tube material hassolidified, a reliable high-quality joint is produced due to thematerial bonding of the strip 3 to the tube 2.

As FIG. 3 shows, the tube-side edge area 9 is dipped into the melt whenthe copper strip 3 is set. Bottom edge 8 of the strip 3 thus extendsslightly under the tube surface 6. After the melt has solidified, atight joint of the copper strip 3 to the tube 2 is ensured, with goodcorrosion resistance at the boundary zone 10. The heated zone in thisarea is small, so that disadvantageous structural changes or materiallosses are prevented. At the same time, high rib efficiency and highheat transfer performance are ensured.

What is claimed is:
 1. A ribbed tube comprising a stainless steel tubeprovided with ribs through helicoidally winding a copper strip aroundit, the ribbed tube being formed by a process wherein:the copper stripis set unmelted edgewise into a melted area of the tube, the melted areabeing produced by a laser beam exclusively on a tube surface of thetube, and the copper strip is thereby bonded to the tube bysolidification of the melted tube material.